Leo Wealth LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)

Leo Wealth LLC lowered its position in Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - Free Report) by 10.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 67,946 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock after selling 8,001 shares during the quarter. Leo Wealth LLC's holdings in Verizon Communications were worth $3,082,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VZ. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 81.0% in the first quarter. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. now owns 543 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Verizon Communications by 71.8% in the first quarter. Cherry Tree Wealth Management LLC now owns 584 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Verizon Communications in the first quarter valued at $26,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC raised its stake in Verizon Communications by 114.6% in the 4th quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 777 shares of the cell phone carrier's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in Verizon Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.06% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI raised shares of Verizon Communications from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $48.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $48.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Bank of America started coverage on Verizon Communications in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $45.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $45.00 price target (up previously from $42.00) on shares of Verizon Communications in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Verizon Communications from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $47.00.

Verizon Communications Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE VZ opened at $41.63 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $175.52 billion, a PE ratio of 9.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.37. Verizon Communications Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $37.59 and a fifty-two week high of $47.36. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $43.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The cell phone carrier reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $33.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $33.31 billion. Verizon Communications had a return on equity of 19.66% and a net margin of 13.14%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Verizon Communications Inc. will post 4.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Verizon Communications Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.6775 per share. This represents a $2.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. Verizon Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.52%.

Insider Activity at Verizon Communications

In other news, CEO Kyle Malady sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.10, for a total transaction of $396,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 10,008 shares in the company, valued at approximately $441,352.80. This represents a 47.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders sold 21,500 shares of company stock worth $938,400. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

About Verizon Communications

Verizon Communications Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of communications, technology, information, and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses, and governmental entities worldwide. It operates in two segments, Verizon Consumer Group (Consumer) and Verizon Business Group (Business).

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